Andre Greipel wants a victory in Santos Tour Down Under

A third victory in the Santos Tour Down Under will be the first objective of the new season for Andre Greipel, who will ride for the updated Lotto-Belisol squad in 2012.

The German sprinter, who won the Australian stage race in 2008 and 2010, returns for what would be a record-breaking third win in the event. Greipel took seventh overall last year, in his first season with the Belgian Omega Pharma-Lotto team.

Greipel used the Tour Down Under to springboard into arguably the most successful season of his career in 2011. The sprinter took eight wins on the season, highlighted by his first career stage win in the Tour de France, when he took Mark Cavendish in a man-up sprint in Carmaux on stage ten.

“Racing in Australia has a special meaning for me, since it is here that I first knocked on the door as a world class sprinter," said Greipel. “I am looking forward to the stages where we will be able to test our new sprint train with solid riders that I believe in a lot. Winning a stage in the Santos Tour Down Under is my first objective for the 2012 season.”

One of the new men making up the Lotto-Belisol sprint train will be Greg Henderson, and the Kiwi will also be making his season debut for the squad in Australia. Henderson took two quality wins of his own in 2011 as a member of Team Sky, in Paris-Nice and the Tour of California, and now he looks forward to a fresh start with the Belgian team.

“We have selected a team that will be ready to compete for victory in each of the stages,” team director Marc Sergeant added. “A good start to the season is very important to us and how could we better start the season than with a stage win in the Santos Tour Down Under?

“The Lotto-Belisol squad will be built around our top sprinter, Andre Greipel. With Adam Hansen and Greg Henderson in the lineup, we have a local Australian and New Zealand rider, each with a specific role to support the team.”

Classics ace Jurgen Roelandts will also start his season at the Santos Tour Down Under. But the Belgian will likely race to assist his team’s featured sprinter, which has race director Mike Turtur excited.

“We know Greipel is a formidable sprinter and our race suits him well, so it will be interesting to see if he can be the first rider to win three editions of the Santos Tour Down Under,” he said.